Faran Tahir Does a Guest Appearance on Grey’s Anatomy

The popular medical drama – Grey’s Anatomy – had a desi flavour this season with a guest appearance by Pakistani actor Faran  Tahir in one of the episodes. Faran, who has acted in films including Charlie Wilson’s War, Star Trek and Iron Man, has also done guest appearances on other shows including Lost, Monk, The Practice and 24. The son of the renowned theatre actress Yasmin Tahir, Faran has been working in Hollywood for the past 15 years. Last year, he told Instep in an exclusive interview that “As an ethnic actor – especially a Pakistani actor working in Hollywood – I feel I have a responsibility to fulfill more than an average American actor would need to.”

His appearance on Grey’s Anatomy had him playing the role of a staff member at the Seattle Grace Mercy West hospital, called Isaac, who has a seemingly inoperable brain tumour, which he pleads McDreamy (aka Dr Derek Shepherd) to operate on. However Tahir’s appearance was marred by a lot of over-acting that put one off. That said, it still was good to see Tahir on such a popular show – and one hopes to see more of a recurring role for him in the future. The LA Times wrote of his cameo, “I’m glad the writers finally gave Derek something to do other than shake his head at the Chief. I loved the case. Isaac (Faran Tahir) was an incredibly intriguing patient. I do wish that we had been introduced to him before this episode, as it might’ve added to the drama, but Isaac still made an impact. The brief life story he rattles off to Derek includes a war, the death of his family, a refugee camp – this guy is fascinating, and everyone in the hospital knows him and cares about him.”

Tahir will next be seen in the film Two Mothers which releases in October 2010.